Twelve Steps to the Throne

Chapter One

Praise

In the book of Ephesians chapter 6, the Apostle Paul does not mince words as he describes to us our “warfare wardrobe “. He describes this necessary attire, the whole armor of God, that we need in order to engage in the spiritual warfare taking place all around us. He also defines the demonic celebrities of the upper class spiritual atmosphere as principalities, powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world. We must have open minds enough to accept the Word of God in understanding that our warfare is not against physical forces, therefore, it is necessary for us to prepare ourselves spiritually to overcome demonic forces.

Our warfare is against invisible powers who have clearly defined levels of authority in a real, though invisible sphere of activity. We often times discover that these types of battles are comparative to no other battles that we may have experienced, either now or in the past. From a natural standpoint, we have no desire to be introduced to these levels of warfare now, nor in the future. However, if we have plans to increase our spiritual growth and our levels of spiritual wisdom in warfare encounters, then there are various spiritual exercises
that we as the people of God must learn how to perform. One of these exercises is the first step to the throne room entitled “Praise!” We must be willing to aggressively invade the territory of the enemy with prayer and intercession in order to get to the throne room of God! By doing so, we can obtain first hand knowledge of Satan’s strategies and schemes. How is that possible?

It is possible because as we exercise our weapons of praise; we immobilize principalities, powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world. Once we reach that highest level of praise, the sound of our spiritual authority thoroughly intimidates and paralyzes the enemy. Then, and only then, are we prepared to enter into the throne room, the Third Heaven, which is where God lives. Too many times, we as intercessors have the tendency to get caught up in the second heaven and do not understand the strategies to get ourselves up to the Third heaven, which is the living room of God! We are now ready to pass through the second heaven and ready to move into the third heaven which is the Throne Room of God. We must make sure that we have the proper strategies in place so that we are prepared to make our ‘Grand Entrance’ into God’s spiritual habitat. Once we reach a high level of praise that thoroughly intimidates the enemy, then and only then, can we move into the Third Heaven.

To move into the presence of God in a strategic way demands us to go through enemy territory. Therefore, we must put on the whole armor of God. Why? The Apostle Paul instructs us to take up the whole armor of God that we may be able to maintain a Battle Stance against the wiles of the devil! Without it, we are unprotected. However, wearing all of this armor is not just passive protection in facing the enemy. We must learn to wear it with His confidence, flaunt it with His grace, model it with His joy, parade it with His praise, and put forth our best efforts to make sure that our adversary knows that we are prepared for his next strike. The strategies that God will give to us prepares us for the battle that we are encountering, as well as any forth coming battles. Praise! It is absolutely the most incredible weapon of warfare given to us to invade Satan’s territory with victory! Once we learn how to use it, we will have discovered one of the most Biblically potent and effective kingdom tools known to mankind. This is the first phenomenal step to the Throne! Praise is the password to the kingdom of God! Let’s break down and define each of the atmospheres.

Just above our heads, we have three Heavens. The first heaven is the sky. This is where the sun shines in the day and the moon lights the sky in the night. The stars occupy the galaxy with a spiritual prestige as they model their beauty for our Creator. Remember, God knows them by name and He placed them in positions where they would perform with perfection and excellence. The rains fall, the thunders roll, and the lightening flashes. All of this activity functions everyday from the first Heaven. Then we have the second heaven. The second heaven is located just above the first heaven. This is the place where principalities, and powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world prevail. This is where we must have the tried and proven whole armor of God as well as the strategies to overcome our adversary. Let me take just a moment and bring clarity to these principalities for you.

Principalities are the governmental forces of Hell. They are the ones who make the decisions as to how, to where, and to what degree that you and I may come under attack. They cannot be bound like demons. In fact, they are the ones who issue commands and strategies to the ground troops (which are demons) in order for them to launch their assaults on us. Neither can they be pulled down in comparison to a stronghold. There is only one way that you and I can deal with a principality. They must be praised out of the way! Once we take down, or move out of the way, the principalities, the demonic powers, and the rulers of darkness of this world, they no longer have a station of authoritative command and therefore have no other choice except to become amenable to our spiritual authority! They will then have to submit to the voice of the anointed, which are you and me. The existing principalities are paralyzed by our praise; therefore, they are silenced by the authority that dwells within us as we are empowered by the Holy Spirit.

One of the greatest demands of the church is to discern between the spiritual struggles, and other social, personal, and corporate battles that both the person and the church deal with today. “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, powers, and the rulers of the darkness of this world.” Ephesians 6:12. For instance, we can sometimes wear ourselves down spiritually by wrestling with the individuals rather than attacking the unseen forces of hell that are working behind the scenes. It is not the individual that is causing the problem. It is the forces that the individual may be allowing to work and operate in and through them to cause the battles. So we are not wrestling against flesh and blood, but against the unseen forces working in and through such things as systems, circumstances, and personalities.